Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Sewing as metaphor for life

Last night I cut into a piece of Roberto Cavalli silk charmeuse. The drape, the heft, the luscious hand, the sophisticated design and color scheme, the slipperiness - everything about this fabric is enchanting - and intimidating.

I was afraid to cut into this cloth - but now that I've gotten a bit more brave, I find that it's working up into a dazzling little blouse that might cost $795.00 at Neimans. I finally worked up the courage to tackle this project, here's what helped me get over my fear:

Planning

Experimenting

Assembling the right tools

Taking my time

I'm making a pattern I've had for some time, the Betsy Ross Pattens hip-tie blouse. This is an adorable little top that's easy to make. Sadly, Betsy Ross Patterns has ceased production - sad because they made some excellent patterns that were simple to make and lovely to wear.

I made this top in some less expensive fabric last year, and the top I ended up with was too baggy for my taste, although that hasn't stopped me from wearing it to death.

I decided that with this Roberto Cavalli fabric I must finally tackle my fear of making a full bust adjustment. Guess what? It's easy! There is nothing to lose but a modest amount of time and the cost of some tracing paper and muslin. It all clicked for me when watched Marcy Tilton's video on making t-shirts. At $40 that video seemed a lot of money to me, but it was a spectacularly useful investment. Yes, spectacular. Thanks Marcy! I discovered for one thing that I'm not a size extra-large, but a size medium with "people on the balcony" as the French would say.

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